Last season he got about as close as a non-participant can get. The Carmel product was a Purdue signee when he attended both games against the Hoosiers. For the Bloomington game, a friend helped him get seats down on the floor.

"He actually told me that I couldn't cheer for Purdue," Cline said. "I was kind of sitting there just cheering for myself. I remember when (Jon) Octeus got that dunk, I couldn't help it and I stood up and he got a little mad at me.

"Assembly Hall can get pretty wild. Just being able to sit on the floor and watch the game up close like that, knowing I'm going to play there next year, was pretty special."

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Purdue's freshman guard on handling the week leading up to Saturday's game at Indiana.
Nathan Baird/Journal & Courier

Cline is one of 10 Indiana natives on Purdue's roster. Most of them weren't even in high school on Feb. 19, 2008 — the last time the programs met while ranked in the top 25. (Indiana won 77-68. Coach Kelvin Sampson resigned four days later.)

Purdue seniors A.J. Hammons and Rapheal Davis took lopsided losses against Indiana as freshmen, but now have won three straight.

"It's my last year playing them, so that's something I'm going to relive all the time when I'm older," Hammons said. "On top of that, we need all the wins we can get, really. They're a great team. It will boost our stock, really."

Regardless of the rivalry, Purdue could use a road victory. It hasn't beaten a Big Ten Conference team with a winning record away from Mackey Arena since opening the conference schedule with a win over Wisconsin.

Indiana is 15-0 at home this season.

"Going in there and trying to quiet that huge crowd is something we'll all try to do as a team," Cline said.

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Purdue's senior center on the success he's had in his career against Indiana.
Nathan Baird/Journal & Courier

Thompson update

Sophomore point guard P.J. Thompson's left foot was back in a walking boot before Thursday's practice. The Indianapolis Brebeuf product did not practice but expects to practice on Friday and play on Saturday.

It's the same schedule Thompson followed after playing last Saturday at Michigan. He wasn't at 100 percent in Tuesday's 71-61 win over Northwestern and played only five first-half minutes. Johnny Hill's performance also contributed to Thompson's extended rest.

"I'm going to watch practice, so I can make sure I know what's going on," Thompson said. "I've been getting a lot of treatment today. I just lifted and I'll probably do something on my own later, whether it's a little conditioning or I might do some form shooting."

It's not secret turnovers have been an issue at times for Purdue, especially in road losses. Thompson is one of the most turnover-averse players in the country, committing only 11 in 585 minutes. He and Hill will also be tasked with defending Yogi Ferrell, an all-Big Ten point guard.

Some of Hammons' biggest games have come in the Indiana rivalry. He scored 30 points against the Hoosiers as a freshman, which stood as his career high until earlier this season. Last season he set a career high with eight blocks in the win at Mackey Arena, then earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors with 20 points and four blocks at Assembly Hall.

Hammons, from Gary, averages 14.4 points and 3.6 blocks over 24.8 minutes in his career against Indiana. Any secret?

"Good night rest, making sure you're ready during shootaround," Hammons said. "Then, I don't know, I guess just listen to my own music instead of listening to Ray's (Davis) music."

Sticker shock

Don't have tickets for Saturday's game yet? Good luck on the secondary market.

As of 4:30 p.m. Thursday, the cheapest seat on stubhub.com was $195 apiece for two seats in the balcony level. (The cheapest single ticket was $10 more, also in the balcony.) Over on seatgeek.com you can get two seats in the lower level for $232 apiece.